You're the Monster
by BlackWolf2Dragoon
Summary: Slowly but surely, humans and monsters were beginning to get along. Fears of each other beginning to settle as they grow slowly used to each other. Then a dead body turns up. Inspector Frisk has her work cut out for her, as she works her hardest to solve the case and keep humans and monsters together. Frans, Alphyne, Sequel to Monster's Aren't Real.


Hello! Sorry this took so long to get this sequel going. This is the third time writing this chapter. I always suck at writing a beginning so I do hope this doesn't turn you away aha.

Here we are! Finally! The beginning of a new story! There's going to be this chapter and another one before we get into the main meat of the game. This is more explaining how monsters blend with humans slowly and begin to get reintroduced to society. The main meat will be touched upon hopefully third chapter onwards~

This is ACTUALLY a murder mystery/crime story. It'll be more CSI level rather than an actual accurate interpretation of how investigations work. I know the bare bones of it from watching documentaries, but that's about it. This is a work of fiction, but I'll try to make it at least reasonable and somewhat realistic. I'll try my best anyway :P CSI is probably the easier option beyond the ridiculous zoom in but it stays clear nonsense. We'd figure out murders a hell of a lot sooner if that were the case.

Regardless! This work has been beta'd twice by the lovely ShiningWings~ She is included as a co-author as she has written parts of Papyrus' dialogue and a lot of this was her idea such as the gold and some others I forget my bad. Remind me what else I forgot~! THank you Nokota for dealing with my shitty writing 3

With that out of the way. I do hope you enjoy this second installment of the Monstrosity Case!

* * *

Entrance

"So. How're ya gonna break it to the humans?" Undyne put out the million-pound question. One that I hadn't really answered yet. One I wasn't sure I knew how to answer. Using the time that Sans had used to watch the stars and imagine the whole new world that had now opened up to him, I still had no idea how to open up the world to the idea that monsters were real. Not only that, but that monsters were an entirely peaceful race, despite what their name implied. I couldn't give her an answer. Tori was understanding of my situation, putting a hand on my shoulder and letting me know that I could take my time to think about it.

But that wasn't entirely true. I'm a police officer. A missing police officer puts the police on high alert more than any other disappearance. I had probably already made national news; for the first time in my life for the wrong reasons. It was only a matter of time before people would come to Mount Ebott and the jig was up. It was much safer to do it as soon as possible and I didn't waste any time.

The very next day, day two of being on the surface, I took a deep breath, steeling myself for the phone call to my superior officer... After I'd managed to make sure Endogeny didn't accidentally eat Spot. Spot was easily small enough to be trampled by Endogeny, so Tori took it upon herself to carry Spot everywhere. Just in case. Sniffer dogs are pretty expensive, even if it had the survival instincts of a dodo.

With that done, it was time.

He picked up on the third ring. "If this is some prank call, I'm warning you it's not funny to be calling from this number."

I swear, I must've gulped audibly as my boss, DCI Terry Douglas, breathing hitched slightly. "Hi, Guv. It's, uh… it's been a while, huh?"

"Frisk?" There was a pause. "You're alive?"

"So far. Somehow." I was uneasy. I was… unsure of what his reaction would be like. Don't get me wrong, I was excited to finally be able to reunite with my colleagues. However, I was worried about the outcome ofreaction to my new-found friends, the monsters.

"How are you...?" Douglas coughed. "Never mind that! Where are you? We' will be sending cruisers to your location. Are you hurt? Were you kidnapped?"

"No! No, I'm… I'm okay." I lied, well a half lie. Physically, I was okay, but mentally I was a disaster waiting to happen. "It's a long story. Before anyone gets here I need… I've got a confession to make."

Silence. For a good minute or two. "Frisk Fanshaw, what kind of confession?"

Considering how delicate of a case this had been, I wasn't surprised how careful he was trying to word his… accusation, was probably the best word for it. "Nothing terrible, I promise! Just… shocking. Remember that old legend? About the white furred monster who carried the first child back to our village and was killed? It's real! That old story of monsters hiding in the mountain. It was real!"

"What are you talking about?" Terry seemed genuinely concerned, and very shocked. There was just no easy way to break it to him honestly.

"I'm being serious. There were monsters hidden under the mountain. Just… when you send a team over here, just don't… they mean no harm, honest." It was almost that bad level of 'they come in peace', but my mind was stumbling over my own words. I was so nervous. I was prepared, hoping that if things went south, RESETTING was even going to be an option anymore. After I had left the void, I couldn't see SOULS anymore, it made me wonder if, with the barrier down, I could even RESET or slow time down anymore.

"You're at Mount Ebott?" I didn't need to answer, as I could hear him talking to someone else on the other side of the phone. "Stay there. We're sending units to your location. How many monsters are there?"

"Um…" I considered lying, to try to make it seem better than it was. I quickly snuffed out that stupid idea, it would only make it worse for myself. "We're talking about maybe… a few hundred?"

"Can't give a rough estimate?"

"I wasn't exactly asking them to stand still and count and they don't really keep tabs on their population."

"Okay. You should have a squadron at your location soon. Just… we're glad you're safe, Frisk." That's when he hung up.

And my phone vibrated with a text message, from Terry himself. Something he didn't want to say aloud in the office.

 _Send me a picture of a monster. So I can give the squadron a heads up._

What he really meant was, he wanted to see a picture to see if it's real. To make sure I hadn't gone off the racket. He was just too polite to say it that way. But, I had to give in. It would make it that much easier for the introduction process.

Sans was a big no no, I could imagine Terry's face if I tried to take a picture of a moving skeleton with a huge grin. He'd probably have a heart attack. So!

"Hey, Tori deary!"

Of course, the moment Tori came to my side, she was instantly suspicious. I wasn't very good at keeping a normal tone, okay? "Yes, Frisk? What's the matter?"

I put an arm around her shoulder, turning her away from the group. I gave Sans a smile, to attempt to let him know I was okay. he tilted his head, his eyes tightening in his way of squinting. Eh, let him wonder. Once I figure we were earshot away, I spoke; "Sorry, I didn't want to hurt anyone else's feelings. I got asked to do something by my boss and the others… well. I need someone cute."

Tori, of course, at first seemed hesitant. Then she giggled, ruffling my hair and putting her own arm around my shoulders and pulling me close. Close to Spot, who began licking my face. Ugh. "Aw, I think you're cute too, Frisky."

"Not what I meant!" With special arts I'd learnt at the police academy, I managed to slip out of Toriel's grasp. "I meant… okay. My boss asked me to see a monster, to take a picture of one, and since you're so lovely Tori, I thought you'd be perfect! Holding Spot like that, there's no way they won't like you!" I held one of Tori's hands in desperation. "Please, Tori? One photo on my phone with Spot? Just you and Spot. I think it'll break the news easier to the police and make the process a whole lot easier."

"But of course! I wouldn't mind having my photo done for anything. Oh, but let me fix up my fur quickly."

Ten minutes of Tori worrying about her fur and me promising that it looked okay and really, they wouldn't mind if your fur was a little messy Tori, I finally got a good shot of her smiling and Spot's tail wagging like crazy. I sent the photo to Douglas, hoping it was good enough.

I never got a reply from him.

So I was left to suffer and be a nervous wreck when I had no idea what to expect.

Papyrus certainly wasn't helping matters. Sans was good to go, hiding in his parka like a turtle was a fine idea. Papyrus showing off his whole glorious bones in his battle armour, however…

"'Kay, we got a big issue we gotta sort here." I hesitated. There really was no good way to explain this without sounding like a dick.

"issues?" Sans said, looking at me quizzically.

"You know, like the fact that some of you might be really frightening-looking to a human, how NOT to act so they don't think you're a threat, things like that, ya know?" I explained tentatively, trying very hard not to offend anyone.

"DO NOT WORRY, HUMAN! THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL BE SURE TO SHOW THE OTHER HUMANS HOW WARM AND CUDDLY SKELETONS ARE! I'M SURE WE'LL ALL BE GREAT FRIENDS IN NO TIME AT ALL!"

...Ah. Maybe it would be better if Papyrus wasn't here at all. How do I put this to him gently? I think Sans is already fully aware. "Actually, Paps, maybe it'd be a great idea, if you just hid away in the back. Away from people. You look much more like a human skeleton than your brother, and he's wearing more concealing clothing than you are." I could only hope the optimistic skeleton didn't take it the wrong way. That being that he would either take it to heart and break down in tears or take it as a compliment (somehow) and completely ignore what I said. Both outcomes wouldn't work in my favour.

"WHAT? WHAT IS A HUMAN SKELETON AND WHY WOULD LOOKING LIKE ONE BE A PROBLEM? SHOULDN'T RESEMBLING SOMETHING FAMILIAR BE A GOOD THING?" I don't remember being trained for this. Jesus Christ.

I could see Sans snickering at me out of the corner of my eye, no doubt remembering our conversation concerning the fact that humans contain skeletons in them. I shot him a glare, before taking a deep breath. Patience, Frisky.

"OK Paps, do me a favor? Come here and take off your glove." I watched him tug off the large red mitt, his eyes focused on his phalanges, no doubt wondering what the fuss was about. "OK, now come here and press your hand up against mine. See?" I told him, pushing our palms together. His hands were gigantic, but the similarity in the shape was unmistakable. "A'ight Papyrus, do you see how similar your hands look to mine?"

"I FAIL TO SEE THE RELEVANCE IN THE FACT THAT WE BOTH POSSESS FIVE DIGITS, HUMAN. IT IS NOT UNCOMMON."

More silent laughter from Sans, now joined by Toriel and Undyne, just out of view behind Papyrus. Not helping.

"A'ight Papyrus, here. Take my hand in yours, and feel along that ridge there." The skeleton did as instructed. He was rather gentle. "Do you feel the ridges underneath my skin?" I asked him.

"YES, HUMAN. THEY APPEAR TO HAVE A STRUCTURE SIMILAR TO MY OWN FINGERS, UNDERNEATH." Hallelujah! We were finally getting somewhere!

"OK Papyrus, well, you know how human bodies don't turn to dust right away when they die like monster bodies do?" I asked gently.

"THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS INDEED AWARE OF THIS INFORMATION. HOW DOES IT RELATE TO THE KNOBS IN YOUR FINGERS?"

I smiled. "I'll get to that. The thing is, while humans don't turn to dust right away, we do eventually do that, in a way, it just takes a really, really, really long time. And things rot away or disintegrate or degrade at different rates, leaving behind just the basic frame that makes a human. So, a human who has been dead for a long time, that body is reduced to its basic frame, got it?" While I loved him, Papyrus sure was hard work.

"I UNDERSTAND. WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH HUMANS BEING AFRAID OF SKELETONS?"

Now for that big issue. "Well, remember when I said you look like a human skeleton?" He nods. "Well, that's because the basic frame of a human is called a skeleton, and it tends to look, well, pretty much exactly like you, Papyrus."

His reaction… well, it wasn't one I was expecting. "OH MY GOD! THIS IS MORE EVIDENCE FOR MY THEORY! YOU SEE I ALWAYS WONDERED IF MAYBE HUMANS DESCENDED FROM SKELETONS! AND SANS SAID MY THEORY WAS SILLY! BUT I FOUND A FLAG IN THE DUMP WITH A COOL SKELETON ON IT, BUT IT WAS FROM THE HUMAN WORLD, SO I THOUGHT THAT IT MUST BE BECAUSE HUMANS AND SKELETONS WERE RELATED, RIGHT?

I was about ready to punch Sans, but I had to give the guy credit. He was better at explaining everything to Paps than I ever will be. Then again, was it possible Papyrus's theory had merit to it? Eh, probably not. It was worth some thought, though. From someone smarter than I.

"Right, but Papyrus, the only reason a human's skeleton is visible is if the human has been dead for years. You look like a dead person, Paps."

That. That got a reaction from him. "WELL CLEARLY I CAN'T BE A HUMAN SKELETON BECAUSE I AM CLEARLY NOT DEAD, RIGHT? SO THE HUMANS HAVE NO REASON TO THINK THAT I AM A DEAD THING!" Not the intended one, obviously.

"That's true, Paps, except humans have scary stories about moving skeletons. People who have been dead for years, brought to life by evil magic to kill living humans. They're not really alive, just full of evil magic making them move. It's like... a scary story told to frighten children, the kind everybody kinda knows even if they haven't heard it, specifically. That's the real problem. Ya see?"

Sans was no longer laughing.

Paps... Papyrus contemplated. He looked... well, a little upset for a moment. But then he cheered right back up. "I THINK I UNDERSTAND, HUMAN. I WILL FIND SOME BAGGY CLOTHES TO WEAR AND STAY IN THE BACK OUT OF SIGHT. BUT ONCE THE HUMANS ARE MORE USED TO MONSTERS, I WILL DO MY BEST TO PROVE THAT I AM NOT A SCARY DEAD THING! WE WILL PROVE TO THE HUMANS THAT SKELETONS ARE VERY FRIENDLY AND, IN FACT, THAT WE REALLY ARE CUDDLY, CUTE MONSTERS!"

Sans walked up to me, around his brother, and clapped me on the shoulder. "i can take a shortcut back home and grab ya that big jacket you bought the last time we were in hotland, and some trousers. kay pap?"

"Sounds like a plan, Sans. Paps?"

"THAT WILL BE ADEQUATE, SANS."

"Oh! One more thing, Papyrus." I continued, while I had his attention.

"YES?"

"Name's Frisk. You shout 'human' when there are fifty of them and all fifty are looking over. Capiche?" Papyrus winked, by wink I mean he said wink out aloud. Sans took about ten minutes trying to find a jacket big enough for Papyrus. He reappeared with a black jacket with orange outlines that I could see Paps being comfortable in. We left him to get changed into his trousers elsewhere in the woods. Because apparently skeletons did have some modesty. Except Sans, as far as I was concerned, he had no modesty.

In that time while Papyrus was gone, I turned to Undyne. "So. Undyne. Just a warning, the human police officers that'll arrive will probably be aiming their guns at us. Or you monsters anyway. But, if we keep it civil, we won't have a problem. Okay?" The last thing we needed was to have Undyne react poorly to the sight of a gun pointed at her king, right? Undyne rolled her eye, about to retort with probably something insulting or sarcastic.

"and those precautions also include hiding me and my brother because we look like dead things?"

Trust Sans. I glanced to him, he was just stood there smiling like always. I think he was nervous, but I couldn't tell. No more nervous than I was. "How'd you react if you saw a walking corpse? Actually, don't answer that." I don't think monsters had corpses to make a comparison. "You get away with it a bit more since you're a bit too…" Rounded, strange face for a skull, don't feel like a skeleton in the least. "Weird to be one." It was probably the best word out of the lot.

"ok, so if I don't look like a dead thing to you, what do I look like?"

This was like minesweeper. In real life with a punishment probably worse than a sad face and hurt pride. "Well, the problem is the shape of Pappy's head, see. And your head isn't shaped anything like his."

He grinned. "so, if my head doesn't actually look that much like a human skull, what do i look like, then?"

This was where my brain suddenly failed to come up with a good answer. "Sort of… like a cross between a human skull and a giant… marshmallow." I… guess I could've done worse?

He cocked his head to the side, "what's a marshmallow?"

Oh, and this was just one of the many hurdles I would have to jump over and explain to him. "Uh… it's made from a root… it's a sweet, all squishy like a white pillow, they're very sweet."

"sooooo you're sayin' i look tasty? you wanna eat me, babe?" And he gave a wink for added effect.

I could hear better than I could see Undyne howling with laughter, throwing her hand down on her knee with a loud slap. I glared at her out of the corner of my eye. Alright. Two can play at that game. "Ya know what else marshmallows have in them? Gelatin. Wanna know what that is? It's a food taken from cow hooves." I didn't know the specifics, but that didn't matter. "It's got all sorts of unhealthy and horrible things, but we love it anyway."

"ouch. but hey, guess i fit into that category of unhealthy, but dang do you need it."

Sans was pretty good at giving as much as he could take. By his grin, he was clearly loving the childish banter we had going. "Keep thinking maybe I should kick the habit."

"naw, baby doll, i'm too good for that. ya know it."

I didn't get the chance to reply as the squadron had finally arrived. My nerves returned with full force, making me realize that Sans had distracted me from feeling nervous about their arrival. I made a mental note to thank him for it later, sure that his plan had been just that.

However, they weren't the squadron I had come to expect and had worked for. These were the riot police, the big boys that get involved when things could turn ugly. My heart sank faster than a sinking ship. Were they really preparing for the worst? I quickly stepped forward, before anybody else could. At least five squadron cars pulled up, more were probably parking further down the road away from the base of the mountain. From the first car, my boss DCI Terry Douglas stood out. A man in his forties, dressed well in the police uniform, standing just about average male height and a little overweight. He had a friendly face, however, something you never really expect from a DCI, with a regular mustache above his lips and no beard. His hair was short and brown, almost hidden in his police hat. He had the beginnings of wrinkles around his eyes, probably from the stress of having to deal with being a DCI, but his face was a welcome one to see. He was the only familiar face I could see in the crowd.

He looked to the monsters first, shocked and hesitant. Worried.

I decided to speak up, smiling, trying my best to seem like I had everything under control. "Guv, it's alright! These are my friends, without their help I'd have never made it out alive."

He heard me, he took a glance to me, but his eyes couldn't help but wander and look at all the monsters. He didn't seem scared, that was a plus at the very least. He didn't have his gun out pointed at them. The riot police, however, did. Not at me, but the monsters. However, they were specially trained, they would not fire unless provoked or ordered by Terry Douglas himself. These guys had seen a lot of things in their time. They were used to screaming riots, being attacked by either the rioters or thrown objects. The fact this gang of monsters I had behind me weren't doing anything of the sort but looking in wonder and worry at them… it was a very different thing than they were used to or expecting.

"Frisk." Douglas finally managed to get a word out. He more breathed it out than said it, still looking at all the monsters, at Toriel who was still holding Spot and then finally back to me. He blinked, shaking his head slightly to clear it. "Sorry, this is all just…" He paused. "Sudden."

"Yeah, I know. I'm sorry, but letting you know before the press found out sounded like a good idea at the time."

"No, no- you did the right thing. It's just… it's so good to see you, alive and well! You were pronounced dead a couple of weeks ago." I wasn't surprised, if a person is pronounced missing for three weeks, the chances of finding you alive are almost deemed impossible. A lot are presumed dead unless evidence suggests otherwise and in my case, I wasn't at all surprised they had done that.

"Yeah… I'm not surprised by that. I figured the media'd go crazy." There was a cough behind me. I glanced and saw Sans tilting his head. His hood was over his head entirely, the fur in his hood almost over his eyes, but I could still see them. He still held his grin on his face, but it seemed strained. His cough reminded me of the bigger issue here, the real reason I brought the police here in the first place. "Ah, sorry." I coughed, before starting again. "DCI Terry Douglas, I'd like you to meet the people who helped me get back to the surface. Asgore, if you would like to introduce your people." I gestured for Asgore to come forward, so he could say his piece. I could only do so much for the monsters.

Asgore nodded, the monsters in front of him parting away to give him room to step forward. I could see some of the officers shifting, in fear or anticipation I couldn't tell. Asgore stood by my side, smiling before he gave them all a bow. "Howdy, I'm Asgore Dreemurr, King of Monsters. I promise, on behalf of my people, that we mean no harm. We're simply looking to live in peace amongst you, outside of the Underground."

"Uh… this is really out of my area of expertise." Douglas murmured, loud enough that Asgore and I could certainly hear. "Sorry. I'm DCI Terry Douglas, Frisk works under my team for the police force of Ebott town. I have called the Mayor to be able to meet with us and discuss what can happen next. I apologize, but I felt it necessary under the circumstances to bring our specials team in to prepare ourselves for the worst. This isn't exactly something that happens." He wasn't wrong. Considering I had no idea what to do in this kind of situation, I had a good idea that he had no idea what to do either.

"It's no problem at all." Asgore replied calmly. "We're sorry to be such a disturbance, but things were becoming dire in the Underground."

Just when my boss was struggling to keep the conversation going, another car pulled up not too far away at the bottom of the hill. I didn't recognize the car itself, but I sure recognized the person who then stepped out of the car. Mayor Richard Armstead, current mayor of London and the surrounding areas. He was dressed like the usual politician, there to look professional with a mop of blond hair. A man in his fifties and it showed, his blond hair clearly bleached, a little on the chubby side. Although, shockingly, he didn't look entirely like the sleezeball I expected most politicians to look. He looked approachable enough, although nothing special.

He struggled a little, getting up the hill, but he managed it. "Ah, my dear Detective Frisk Fanshaw! We are so glad to see you alive and well!" His voice was smooth as silk, therefore completely capable of being slippery as a snake. "When I was told you had brought monsters with you, I hadn't expected such a vast contrast between them all!" I wasn't exactly sure how to reply to that. "My apologies, I'm Mayor Richard Armstead, mayor of London, a pleasure to meet your acquaintances, Mr…?" He gestured for Asgore.

Asgore smiled, remaining as polite as ever. "Mr Asgore Dreemurr. It is a pleasure to meet you, Mr Mayor. I am sorry we monsters have disturbed you, but we only intend on living in peace among you."

"Ah, see, a noble cause as it were!" Armstead sighed dramatically. "Alas, we simply cannot allow that, not yet." I was afraid of that, and it seemed everyone's spirits dampened slightly as soon as they heard him speak. "We simply don't know what risk we pose to one another. What if a disease were to break out simply because humans and monsters are not meant to be? It's something I simply cannot allow! Not without precaution." He turned back to me. "I'm afraid, Frisk Fanshaw, you will have to come with us. We must check you up to make sure you haven't brought anything… unsanitary, back with you and we must see you are in perfect condition."

I wanted to growl, to tell him to sod off with that kind of language he was using. How fucking rude. But, I bit that back. This was a delicate situation and I needed to be on my best behavior. Just do what they say and nothing'll happen. "Oh, of course. But I want you to give me your word that you won't harm my friends while I'm away." Not that it mattered, what could I do? I was worried for them, but I knew it'd be worse for them if I fought to try to stay. This would be better for them.

"But of course! We are not monsters, after all. Oh, sorry, that term seems rather rude now, doesn't it?" He coughed, while I could slightly hear a growl behind me. Glancing back, Sans looked like he was doing his best to not grind his teeth together, his fist scrunched up tight. I couldn't do much else but grab his first, to try to calm him down. Even if it was just for a second, it seemed to do the trick well enough. "I give you my word, these men under the guidance of DCI Terry Douglas will not harm a single monster."

Well, it was the best I was going to get. Taking a deep breath, I nodded. "Okay. I'll come with you. As soon as we're done here, however, I'm coming back here for them."

"That is acceptable."

Okay. I felt anxious as anything, scared even, that I was going to be separated from the people I had been used to hanging out with for a good month or two now. I had no idea what was going to happen to me, what they would find or if they would ask me any questions about what happened Underground. I turned to Asgore, smiling, looking more confident than I felt. "It's okay. I'll come back as soon as I can, I promise. Promise me you'll take care of everyone?"

"Of course, Frisk. Nobody will be hurt under my watch." Asgore put a large paw on my shoulder. "Go. And remember. Stay determined."

I took a glance to Sans, he looked about ready to grab me, pull me away and stop me going with the police officers. I felt badly for him, but this was entirely out of our control. There was nothing I could do. "I promise." I spoke, answering Asgore mainly, but meant for Sans really. A promise that I would return, no matter what.

After all, I didn't have much else to go back to here.

Leaving Shadow behind, telling him to stay, I walked to a couple of rough looking officers, guns held up to their chests ready to aim when need be. "This way, Miss Frisk." Curt and distant, unlike any of the officers who worked under my district. I was led to the back of a police van, into the caged area meant for arrested criminals, not for a police officer like myself. But I didn't protest, they were probably worried I'd make a runner for it out of fear more than anything.

I didn't blame them, I felt like doing it the moment the doors closed on me. Is… is this how many of the criminals I had arrested in my time as a police officer felt? Not all were guilty for the crime we had thought they had committed. It wasn't often, but sometimes evidence leads us astray, I had to wonder if all those who were innocent felt exactly as I did right now. I couldn't see where we were going, not clearly anyway. I could see the light outside, I could hear the traffic moving from outside, I could tell when we went under a tunnel but it made it no easier for me to discern where we were going.

Turns out, as I was finally let out of my cage, I'd arrived at London's biggest police station and jail. Sector 1, the oldest out of the lot. It stood intimidatingly big, bland and old yet it persisted. I had never been to this station before, so close to Westminster where all the politicians sat at their desks dictating how our lives will soon be run. Oh, there was no chance I was going to be able to hide anywhere here, they were not joking on the manner of how serious this is if they brought me here. I didn't protest, listening to the officers gossip amongst themselves about me as they guided me through the halls.

"Can you believe it? Monsters, under that mountain the whole time?"

"Yeah man! Crazy shit, imagine them running through the streets."

"Gotta admit, they look pretty darn scary! I mean, they were nice sure but what if they get angry?"

"Ain't nothing a gun can't sort out." I stiffen, this kind of attitude was one I was going to have to get used to, whether I liked it or not. I remained civil, it wasn't worth blowing up over the ignorant.

The room they finally guided me to, I understood the layout perfectly well. This was an interrogation room.

"Wait, what am I-?" I tried to ask, before I was forced onto the chair, my hand suddenly cuffed and I gaped at the pair moving away. "Wait!" But too late, they were gone and out the door, locking it behind them. Shit. Sitting here, it took me only five seconds to realize why they had brought me here. The fact none of the children had come back with me, there was no sign, no mention, my real goal was to try to bring them back or find out what had happened to them. And the truth was, some of them I wasn't entirely sure what had happened. They were here to find out, from me. An insight I hadn't anticipated right away, figuring the monsters to be a bigger issue. Blast it! Okay. The best thing I could do is tell them the truth. Hopefully, without showing the monsters off in a bad light. Already, the prospect of bringing humans and monsters together would be rocky from the very beginning. Considering at least three children had most certainly been killed by the monsters. There was no avoiding telling them that. I just… had to be truthful.

The door opened, and turning my head, I I turned my head to see a large muscled man with an impressive goatee to boot. He was clearly a DCI with his badges on his arms, plain brown hair, green eyes that looked sharp. This was a bad cop. As in, he was not going to be very sympathetic towards whatever I had to say. Of course they couldn't let Terry interrogate me, he was too close to the case. He would only be a part of this case where monsters were concerned. This guy seemed to be the strong silent type, he didn't say a word to me as he walked to the other side of the desk and sat down. Silently, he prepared the recorder, before he begun.

"DCI Keith Ross in the room with suspect DI Frisk Fanshaw. Start time 10:14am. Now, Miss Fanshaw. List me the names of the missing children involved in your case." I listed them without hesitation. "Good. Now, in your own words, give me your account of what you believe happened to these children."

This was the tough part. I decided upon the easiest to explains one first. William Prince: Wwe never discovered his location, nor did any of the monsters know of what happened to him. They found his SOUL floating near Hotland and they were quick to capture it for their need to open the barrier. I explained carefully about a human's SOUL, that with monster magic perhaps being so strong in the air in the Underground, it was entirely possible to see floating SOULs or maybe spirits in the air. Keith must've humoured me, as he hmph'd at the very idea, but told me to continue.

Allan Baker's death was somewhat a mystery, but maybe could be hypothesized. The shop keeper bunny had said she had found his items in the snow, though no body was ever discovered. His SOUL, however, was captured in the same way that William's was. Probably a safe bet was that Allan had been ill-equipped for the cold and he died of exposure during a blizzard, his body buried in the snow never to be seen. However, his SOUL managed to escape.

Oliver Sanders. Again, his body was never found. His weapon, a gun no less, was found in Alphys' lab though she didn't seem to have any idea how that got there. She just found it and kept it. His SOUL was taken straight to Asgore. I told Keith Ross that honestly, there was zero evidence to suggest he was murdered, considering there was no body at the scene and his gun was simply found. We had nothing to go on. His death will probably remain a complete mystery.

Chara's was simple. She'd suddenly and quickly fallen ill to a mysterious disease. One that assumedly Asgore had suffered from a few days before. Unable to identify, let alone cure the illness, the monsters were helpless to help Chara. She died soon after from the disease. I explained that the monster that had entered the village had been Tori and Asgore's son, the prince of monsters. The reason he had taken her to the village was to give her a proper burial, something they were not able to give in the end. He asked me to explain how Asriel managed to cross the barrier, when they weren't ever able to in the end. This, I gave no comment to. It was dangerous, but there was nothing I could say that could make this situation any better. Keith huffed, a smirk coming onto his face.

"Alright. What about the others?"

These were the tough ones. Beatrice I could explain to the best of my abilities. I explained that since we had killed Asriel the prince of monsters in cold blood, the monsters were terrified of humans. They believed that if any human came to the Underground, there would be a slaughter of them all, and so for such an event, they prepared themselves and trained to protect their home from human invaders they were sure would kill them. Beatrice was a case of bad luck. I told him the exact story I remember Doggo and the pair of lovebird dogs had told me. Beatrice had seen the dogs and became excited, waving her pan around, screaming and running towards them. They freaked out, believing they were under attack and killed her quickly. They saw her pan as a weapon strong enough to kill a monster and disposed of her quickly before she could kill them.

"You really expect me to believe that some little girl is able to kill a massive dog monster wearing armour?"

"Well, I didn't either, but monsters are terrified of humans. The same in that we are terrified of them. We don't know each other, we fought in a war long ago that we don't remember. It's no surprise we're afraid of each other, but I promise you that no monster here would harm a human. They may be scared, but they dislike violence."

He didn't seem to understand, the very idea sounded ridiculous, but that was the truth of it. He shook his head, muttering. "I'll let the jury decide whether it is self-defense or not. When the time comes." It was the best I could hope for, for the lovebird dogs. I felt bad for them, but it was the truth of it, and hopefully this could count as self-defense. It would take convincing the jury.

Now. Bruce and Godfrey Walters. I'm sorry Undyne. There was no saving this. I couldn't lie about this, not when the evidence was stacked against her. Too many monsters knew she had taken down those children; she had boasted it for crying out loud! The king himself had given her orders to kill humans - She was only doing as she was told. I couldn't make her life any easier. It was the way of the law. I took a deep breath.

"They were killed. I cannot lie about that, even if the murder hadn't been malicious." Keith leaned forward, glaring, trying to intimidate me. I had seen his type all too many times and I wasn't particularly afraid of his stature. I knew they couldn't do anything to me. "That fish monster, Undyne, she is a soldier, Asgore's right hand woman. She was given orders to kill any humans that came too far into the Underground. She believed all humans were tyrants, killers ever since she heard the story of Asriel's death. It didn't help that Godfrey carried a knife around. A toy knife. It may have been fake, but the threat was still there, I believe Undyne might've mistaken the toy knife for a real knife, believing her people to be in danger. But…" I sighed. "I can't defend her. She attacked those children with the intent to kill. Ask any monster and they'll tell you."

Keith huffed. "A likely story. We'll hold what you've told me as evidence, and we will be asking the monsters for their accounts as well." I had figured as such. I shrugged, it was of no bother to me, considering I had told the truth, I had nothing to hide. "We'll be keeping you in custody, however." What? "Since you were the only one to return alive, I'd wonder why. Sure, wonder if it had anything to do with the fact you're related to Cyril Shackelford?"

Just like that. This wasn't a simple situation anymore. "How do you-!?"

"We had to check your profile when you went missing, trying to find any little piece of evidence we could as to your whereabouts. Turns out, Cyril had nothing to do with it. He was rather distraught to learn you were missing. We haven't told him we found you yet, but seems like he does actually care about you. Didn't realize psychopaths could care about anyone." He stood up, watching as I stared in horror. That was a secret. One I'd tried hard to forget about. "Seems you changed your name two years ago. From Frisk Shackelford to Frisk Fanshaw. I wonder. It had nothing to do with the fact you'd hide better? Come to the police force, get an inside, murder children in his place and get the old man free if he was proven not to be a killer after all?"

I stood up, banging my hands against the table and glared daggers at the officer. He stumbled, shocked that I'd reacted so violently to his goading. But he was asking for it! There was no reason for that to have been brought up, there was no evidence whatsoever! "Leave him out of it. I've no relation to him, not anymore. I changed my name so he'd get a fucking clue. I only visit him to remind him what he had done. How he ruined me. So, if you're wondering if I'm trying to help him out of jail. The answer? He can rot in that cell for all I care. He's nothing to me." Furious, I stalked towards him, poking him in the ribs with my finger and snarled in his face. "Don't you dare compare me to him. Ever."

That was the end of interrogation, apparently. He ended the recording, calling for my apparent bodyguards to take me away. I was left to sleep in my own cell, one much nicer than I knew Cyril was stuck in, I was sure. My only crime was being related to him and being a suspect for missing children. I knew I would be out soon enough. They had no cause to keep me behind bars for too long.

The next day I was left to the doctors. I had been escorted by the same pair of cops who now looked at me differently. No longer were they aloof, but careful. Like the very idea I was related to a killer meant that I might blast into a killing spree randomly on them. My mood remained sour. This was why I had kept it a secret. I would be treated as a killer's relative instead of the police officer I had worked so hard to become. I had saved lives, brought down criminals, kept my town safe but OH biology!

The doctor was no better, a stammering idiot nervous around my presence rather than the pair of cops. It didn't matter my life had been ruined by him, I had his blood deep down. What hope did monsters have if I was related to a true monster and everyone gave me second glances?

Health check turned up a-ok. I was completely and utterly normal, although the doctor pondered about my heightened brain activity, he didn't see this as an issue. Perhaps being around magic had something to do with it? I didn't care to theorize or tell him about magic, I'd only be laughed at.

A week of being kept in a city, scrutinized by human eyes constantly and I was finally free.

Of course, I wasted no time in getting changed back into my police uniform (it seemed easier so I wouldn't be stopped at Ebott's checkpoint towards the mountain) and getting dropped off by Tweedle dumb and Tweedle Dee officers I had to put up with the entire week. I didn't bother to learn their names. I'd never see them again after this anyway.

I was shocked. Arriving to Ebott, the monsters had managed to make quite a home for themselves. Their magic must've certainly helped, as they had managed to create wooden huts using the trees all around the mountain. The area still somehow didn't seem barren of trees, the huts spread out enough to give the area a feeling of fullness. They'd managed to build three huts so far, working their way onto a fourth one as I was watching them go to work in unison. Monsters, I had to admit, were very good at teamwork. I was amazed to see even Mettaton was helping in his robot form, bringing down trees with that chainsaw he just conjures out of somewhere. Everyone was doing their part, including Sans who was using his telekinesis to put and keep the cut logs into place whilst Greater Dog nailed the pieces down to the structure.

"Ah, Fanshaw!" I heard Mayor Armstead call out, coming to my side and he put a hand on my shoulder as soon as he was in range. "Isn't it a delight to behold? These monsters are very capable of building such lovely homes in such a short time! Imagine, the work of magic if we had it for ourselves."

"Careful there, Mayor." As impolite as I was being, I was not in the mood for dealing with more ignorant idiots. My mood hadn't improved in the least over these days being stared at. "These are my friends you're talking about. Not objects."

"Oh, but of course! No offense meant whatsoever!" He piped up, almost nervous. Almost. "As useful as they may be, we simply don't have the money to possibly support them all. I don't see how the town could accept them for what they are, we are already suffering a financial crisis as it is!" He wasn't wrong. Britain was currently going through a huge crash that the entire world was suffering with also. Greece had already declared itself bankrupt and many other countries were struggling to support themselves, let alone other countries. The monsters had brought plenty of food themselves from the Underground, but it was only a matter of time before that ran out.

"Ah, Frisk!" It seemed Asgore had spotted I was being hounded and came to my rescue. He bowed to me, like he always did and I smiled. "I am glad to see you back unharmed. Papyrus was distraught when he hadn't heard from you in days."

"I'm sorry, I promise I'll visit him as soon as I'm done here, Asgore. I love what you've done! This is amazing!"

Asgore smiled. "I'm glad you think so! The humans have been treating us well, mostly they've been watching our progress, I think ,with enthusiasm. They're happy to watch us as we work."

"Absolutely, Mr Dreemurr!" Armstead pipped in. "It is a wonder to watch real magic at work! Your people work so well together, I can see how you managed to survive in the Underground together!" He was proper pepping it to Asgore's side, trying to smooch on him to get closer to magic. I suppose I wasn't entirely surprised, he was a politician at the end of the day and they always wanted something.

"Indeed, we help each other and those less capable. We are all equal whilst being so different. We monsters need to stick toge- oops!" Whilst Asgore had been rifling through his pockets with a large paw, he had dropped a gold on the floor. "My apologies." He bent down to pick it up, dusting it off from the dirt it had caught whilst on the ground.

"Wait a second… Asgore, if I may?" Mayor held out his hand, asking if he could see the gold up close. With a shrug of his shoulders, Asgore handed Mayor the gold coin. I wasn't sure what was so interesting about it, their form of currency I figured would be about as useless as ours. They didn't look too different to pound coins. At least, I didn't think so. "Is this… would you mind terribly, Mr Dreemurr, if I allow a specialist to look at this gold coin?"

"Oh, of course not! I have plenty more, one gold is hardly going to be missed." Then Mayor took off like a bat out of hell. Just like that, he was dashing for his car and made his getaway. Huh. "Was it something I said?"

I shrugged. "I think he's just a bit of a loonie anyway? Politicians. You never get used to them." I shook my head, looking to Asgore again. "Have you seen the Skeleton brothers? You said Papyrus was worried about me?"

"Oh! Papyrus was sitting with Alphys last I saw. He's been doing her best to comfort her."

Comfort her? "What happened?"

"Undyne was taken away by the authorities on the grounds of the Walter brothers' deaths." Ah. That. That might've been my fault. Entirely. "You did what you had to do. She was taken to Ebott's police station, so she isn't far away. They reassured us she'd be well taken care of." That was a plus, that she was taken to a police station that I knew very well.

Alphys wasn't difficult to find. Not when Papyrus was training her the same way Undyne trained with Paps. It seemed that Alphys was struggling to keep up, but she seemed determined to do her best.

"she's takin' it better than i thought." I turned my head, seeing Sans standing right besides me. His teleporting still made me nervous to this day, he looked completely relaxed, but his posture and face told a different story. He hadn't been sleeping well, that much was clear from the dark patches under his eyes that probably mirrored my own. He seemed stiff, whilst appearing aloof, his hands inside his pockets seemed clenched and pushed into his pockets as much as possible without appearing obvious. He had his eyes closed, but I could imagine it's because he didn't want me to see his eyes, rather than being relaxed.

I crossed my arms, turning back to watch the pair, a frown on my face. "I bet she hates me now. I know her and Undyne weren't official but…"

"eh, don't beat yaself up, doll." Sans sighed, bringing out a dog biscuit from his pocket. He put one in his mouth and brought a lighter, lighting the treat in his mouth. My eyes widened. What kind… but I remember, smoking dog treats was a popular past time in Snowdin, particularly with the dog clan. I'd never tried it, but I wasn't sure I was gunning for it. "she killed those kids, we all knew she ain't exactly a saint. she was gonna get judged either way." He shrugged his shoulders, a grin on his face, as he finally opened his eyes to look at me. His pupils seemed much smaller than I remembered. That probably wasn't the first dog treat he had smoked today.

"You look like shit, Sans."

Sans chuckles. "could say the same to you, sweet cheeks." He offered me the dog treat, after having a long drag. Well, there was a first time for everything, I suppose. I took it, unsure of how I would react, having never tried drugs in my life. I took a drag, coughing slightly. It had almost the similar taste to the smell of weed, probably a very similar effect to what weed had too. It stung my throat, only because I hadn't been prepared for it. The cinders left behind the taste of what I imagined bark to taste like. "helps me sleep. after ya were gone… kept waking up thinkin' we were back in snowdin. or back underground. just… it's hard to forget."

That was my fault. Or Chara's, in previous time-lines that I still didn't understand, nor remember. But I could feel it in my SOUL; Chara was never coming back. She was gone, somehow, some way or another, I was myself and only myself. I grabbed Sans' hand that once held the dog treat, smiling sadly as I took another drag from the dog treat with my free hand. "I'm sorry, for what it's worth. I promise, I won't RESET unless absolutely necessary. Although, I can't RESET myself. Seems it only works when I kill myself. I don't see me doing that anytime soon." To speak calmly about my own deaths. Oh boy, never let the therapists hear that. "Besides, dunno if I can RESET here. I… well, haven't been feeling DETERMINED for a little while."

Sans didn't speak for a while, content to watch Alphys continue to train with Papyrus in tow. His grin dropped into a genuine smile on his face. "i know. no worries, we both got our own shit to deal with. so long's i'm with ya, think i'll get better slowly." He looks at me from the corner of his eyes. "'sides, paps misses ya. and shads. and endo."

I smile. "Well, I better not disappoint Papyrus. Heaven forbid! How could I do such a thing?"

Sans snickers, still watching his brother as him and Alphys seem to be packing up and getting their things together. Seems like maybe things weren't going to be as bad as I thought. I looked down when I felt Sans lean against me, his chin right against my shoulder, but he was still looking away from me. "missed ya too, ya know."

I wasn't one for romances, not genuine ones anyhow. I wasn't very good at showing genuine affection, having nobody to practice with. But, I missed the bonehead as well. Just like that, I had forgotten my foul mood of being treated a criminal and the shit situation I was stuck in, along with the monsters themselves. I suppose, I'd be worse off without Sans by my side. I put my arm around his shoulders, pulling him closer to me as I lay my head near his. And felt entirely comfortable doing so. "I missed you as well. Don't know how I didn't punch a few police officers without you there to calm me down." He looked up, concerned, but he simply hummed. "It's a long story." One I couldn't tell him. Not yet. Cyril was an entirely different story I'd tried to forget. It was better that way. "Soon, we can enjoy the surface together. Properly. You still owe me a proper date."

His grin returned. "i don't disappoint my lady. oh hey. you got new cuffs? might wanna put 'em on me, cuz i've been a _naughty boy._ "

"What have you done now?"

"check ya phone."

Confused, I did so, opening to see I had a new picture message from Sans. What on earth? Opening the message, I almost wanted to laugh, but felt this wasn't the time. On my phone, a modest almost cute picture of Sans winking to the camera. He was awkwardly holding the phone up, clearly not used to doing this sort of thing, whilst his other hand kept his shirt up. His bare ribs were on full show, a real skeleton, the inside the back of his shirt visible on the other side. There was a floating white upside-down heart I knew to be his SOUL was hiding at the back of his spine behind his ribs. The actual picture itself was hard to find… well, _naughty,_ I guess is the word. Considering he lacked skin, it made it hard to seem like he was showing off much, but there was significance of his SOUL being shown the tiniest bit. Almost equivalent maybe to showing cleavage, but for monsters? Looking at it from human eyes, it was adorable. I felt a flare of respect and happiness. Sans trusted me enough to even show a glance of his SOUL to me. Through a picture, sure, but I remember how nervous I was when first showing my true flesh to someone else. It didn't matter that it was a picture, it must've taken true courage and trust for Sans to do this. He may play it off as being naughty, but I knew… he must've wanted to show he was serious about this.

I decided I would play along. "Wow, yeah you definitely need to be cuffed and kept out of trouble, bone boy."

Sans seemed to brighten up a little, almost as if he was worried what I was going to say about his picture. Like he was nervous. It's adorable. His grin seems genuine, widening and his eyebrows lower, trying to appear provocative. "why not cuff me to yourself again? seemed to keep the both of us out of trouble last time, eh?"

"OHMYGOSHISHIPITOOOOOOOH!" A flash and the pair of us blinked as Alphys could barely contain herself. "Number one OTP!"

"GOOD EVENING HUMAN! OOOH WE MISSED YOU!" Both Sans and I were hugged and lifted clear off the ground by Paps. Ahhh, how I missed being with my monster family!

Several days passed before the Mayor returned to Surface. Yes, apparently that's what Asgore had decided to call this humble hamlet of wooden buildings. Imaginative as always!

"I've got terrific news, my friends!" His opening statement came, as all the monsters were gathered here to hear the apparently 'terrific news' he had. "Thanks to the gold pieces you have, I think I may have found a way to help introduce you to human society!" Who knew that money could make their hearts sing? "These gold pieces are pure 24 carat gold! These are worth a fortune! Is this the normal currency for you monsters?"

Asgore could answer this one, easily. "Why, yes. We minted the gold we found underground into coins when we were digging through the mountain trying to make more space for our people. It was the only thing we thought to use as currency at the time. There was easily enough gold to make it happen, so it only seemed logical."

"Fascinating! And, is there more to be found?"

Asgore shrugged. "Perhaps, however we stopped digging and stopped making gold several years ago. We ran into… issues. And so we stopped production."

"I say, my friends, this gold here, your gold could help our country out in our time of need! This is exactly what can help unite our races together! You can save our country in our money crisis and I'm sure the public will open their arms to you! This is perfect!" At this, monsters began chatting, growing excited. There seemed to finally be some movement! Something happening! After almost two weeks of being stuck in Surface, maybe we could finally begin to move forward. "I'll slowly introduce the public to you. I say, maybe we'll start with camera crew, if they interview and see how you go day to day, perhaps they'll be more comfortable. Then allow the public to visit until they get used to the idea of monsters. Yes. I see it now!"

It didn't seem like the best plan, but it was the best that we had gotten in a long time! Slow and steady wins the race! "Finally we're getting somewhere! I'll cook tonight and celebrate, my treat boys."

"ARE YOU SURE HUMAN?" Papyrus pondered. "BECAUSE I DON'T MIND COOKING SPAGHETTI AGAIN!"

"Aw, don't worry, Papyrus. I just want to show you my cooking!" But the real reason was three days of pasta was enough for me and maybe some more human-like food was a better option.

"no worries, bro. your cooking is still the best, but it'd be nice to see frisky's cooking." Thank you, Sans! "she'd look so cute in an apron." And he winks. Rolling my eyes, I shove his shoulder slightly enough to make him laugh aloud as I head to our shack. One I was sharing with the pair of skeletons and Alphys. She was probably in her room on her laptop, slowly learning more about our world. Or watching anime, both are entirely possible. I didn't disturb her and began gathering the ingredients to begin making ratatouille. Simple, but something different than pasta! I was always a lazy cook, half arsing the recipe given to me and half bothering to measure what I needed. Eh, they were more guidelines anyway.

I was chopping the final pepper, when I heard the door close behind me. I glanced a look, to see it was Sans who had returned. I smiled, turning around as I was done cutting the pepper and gave the knife a quick rinse. "Hey, bonehead. How's the crowd outside toni-" I was shaking the knife, letting the water drip off the blade, when I heard a crackle. Confused, I looked up to see- HOLY SHIT.

A beam of light, from beside Sans shot forth from the maw of what I could only call a proper monster. One that I recognised, but hadn't thought to see again. A canine head with horns growing out of the back of its head, sharp teeth like wolf's fangs and it was almost the size of Sans himself. A creature I recognised as one I had seen in the void. What was it doing here!? A beam of blue light shot out of its maw, aiming directly at me! I managed to dodge right at the last possible second, only because I felt time itself slowing down around me. The beam moving much slower than I knew it should. My magic! My SOUL! My DETERMINATION! It still worked! Somehow, I dodged out of the way, completely missing the beam of light that punched right through the building's wall behind me. I turned around, seeing a circular cut out hole where the beam of light had struck. It's like anything it touched disintegrated. I looked to Sans, the canine head suddenly disappearing from wherever the fuck it came from, his left eye dimming from the bright blue it had been and his hands covered his mouth from his sheer look of horror. His eye lights were gone, he took a step back.

I looked down at myself. Completely unharmed, somehow, and had gotten away without feeling exhausted or feeling any different at all. I had dropped the knife onto the floor in my effort to dodge and it lay on the floor, but I didn't care. Looking at my hands, I couldn't believe it. I grinned like an idiot, elated to the fact I'd narrowly missed death. Though, that didn't matter! If I could slow down time like that… then, surely, that meant I could still RESET? I couldn't die. I couldn't die! This was terrific! My powers could still work on the surface!

I looked up to Sans, excited to tell him that I was a tough nut to crack, but he wasn't there. He was gone. Frowning, I went to the door and peeked out. Nothing. He had vanished. Looking back at the kitchen wall, I suddenly came to terms with the fact that he'd almost killed me.

Just like that. Like the time at MTT Resort, like the time he'd stabbed me with a bone attack. The same horrified, distant expression on his face. Empty eye sockets, grin turning sinister and an oppressive feeling in the air, like a thunderstorm was looming. It was the most warning I had to get out of the way, before suddenly the kitchen wall was gone. Nobody had been behind me, nobody behind the wall either, so what could have prompted such a reaction? It didn't make any sense, being in an empty room in MTT Resort he told me it felt like the time Chara massacred everyone, but this time-

Oh. Looking at the ground, the blade shone from the light above me. I saw my reflection, hair wild, eyes wide, a deer caught in the headlights. A knife, a pretty big one at that. A weapon, sure. Not the most effective, being so large, but a knife was a knife regardless. It would not have surprised me that a knife would certainly be a weapon of choice for a child intent on murder. It was easy to use, it was everywhere and was easy to hide. It was messy, sure, but a kid wouldn't care if a monster just disappears when killed. And I swung it about like a moron, looking exactly like the murderer with a giant knife waving it like a maniac. Of course he reacted badly! You replace a knife with a gun and anyone would've probably have reacted in the same way.

A second time, he had lashed out thanks to his PTSD. I… I felt for him. He was a very troubled individual, through no fault of his own. Maybe he just needed a few minutes alone, to get over the trauma and nightmare. It was a close call, and I'm sure he didn't want to risk another happening anytime soon.

He still didn't return when Papyrus returned from work. Or when Alphys came downstairs when dinner was ready.

"WHERE'S SANS?"

I smiled, "Oh, sorry, I guess we fought a little and… well, I'm sure he'll be back in no time! Just give him some alone time, I'm sure he'll be back."

Alphys didn't seem convinced, as she glanced to the hole in the wall. Perfectly cut into a circle. "W-what happened, F-frisk?"

"Oh, that? Sorry. Guess I really suck at cooking, huh?" There was no way I was telling Papyrus or Alphys about Sans' power. One I never knew he had. Well, I knew he had some sort of connection to the strange beasts, but I had no idea… They were weapons, killing machines that Sans could somehow commune with. Chara's frustration all suddenly became clear to me. That was how he beat her, every single time! That was how he was so powerful, those Satan goat heads from hell. With those, Sans could defeat Chara every time she fought him, combined with his bone powers I was sure he had as well as Papyrus, it was no wonder she was never able to beat him! He was a lot more dangerous than he ever let on, and yet… he seemed to be the only one who understood me. The only one who understood what it was like to feel feared, yet cared about at the same time. He was probably not viewed with fear by most, thinking he was too lazy or too slow to do anything to anyone. Thing is, he didn't _need_ to move to destroy you. Whilst there's myself, related to a murdering bastard who found it hilarious that she'd gone down so quickly. A name change didn't change the fact he was still family, that I had his blood in my veins, doomed to become a killer myself, so the folks think. Maybe I had, with Chara possessing me, but that wasn't me.

"WOWIE HUMAN! YOU COOK WORSE THAN UNDYNE, AND UNDYNE BURNT HER HOUSE DOWN THREE TIMES!" That… that was an achievement if I ever saw one. Of course, a glance at Alphys told me she knew for sure what I told her was utter bullshit. She didn't seem convinced in the least, her eyes squinting through her glasses to let me know she knew for sure. She looked, noticed I was still shaking, despite the fact I almost died an hour ago, looked at the hole in the wall. And her eyes widened, as she glanced back at me and I shook my head.

"O-oh! Yes, um, don't worry F-frisk. It happens t-to the best of us!" Thank you Alphys.

So, with that, a giant hole in the wall, we ate our dinner while I asked them how the work was going. Alphys was better understanding the law system, so she knew what to expect when she went to visit Undyne's court case. She wouldn't be able to take part, but she could watch. To even understand how a courtroom worked would help. She didn't hold what I had done against me. She knew, before I went to explain, that it was better Undyne pleaded guilty as the punishment was much less severe than if she tried to deny it entirely. Whether she would plead guilty or not was another matter entirely, something only a lawyer could help her with, whoever her lawyer may be.

Papyrus was only too happy to share the fact he had chopped down five trees today all on his own. He had the high score, he was sure! I laughed, letting him know I was sure everyone was very proud of him bringing justice to those awful trees.

It was a nice meal, despite the vacant older brother, I was sure he would return soon and things would go back to normal.

He didn't. Days. Weeks. Nothing. He had gone, disappeared, run away. I could only hope he was okay, trapped here with the monsters until we were free to roam with everyone else. I couldn't go looking for him, the moment I leave is the moment something terrible happens. I couldn't go searching for him, expose him to the world in a place he shouldn't be. I could only hope he could keep himself hidden, until the day we were free from the Surface and I would hunt him down. I wouldn't rest, not until he explained himself on what the fuck just happened then.

Besides, he still owed me that date.

* * *

Hope you all enjoyed that! Sorry I'm updating this a day later on Fanfiction, if some of you have noticed it was up on AO3 before. I was in ushc a rush to get it posted there and into bed I totally ignored FF. I'm so sorry! ;.; forgive this noob :C

This first chapter is in Frisk's POV. It's going to be in Sans' POV from here on in. It's in her POV to basically get the ball rolling and starting up on a new world~ I hope this lives up to the expectation that Monster's Aren't Real had. 3

Thank you for reading and hope you all have a lovely day!

~Blackie


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